Our NIH-supported laboratory has the dual focus of radioligland and expert system development, with a goal of enhancing clinical care. The radiologand component of the laboratory was transferred from the University of Utah to Emory in 1986, and the research focus has continued to be the development of technetium-99m renal tubular radiopharmaceuticals. This focus recently has expanded to include other radioligands, such as one targeting pancreatic cancer. The second focus of the laboratory is to develop a decision support system for the interpretation of radionuclide renal scans. We initially developed specific software for processing MAG3 renal scans (QuantEMTM) to measure the MAG3 clearance and calculate other quantitative parameters important in scan interpretation. Subsequently, we have developed a much more sophisticated version of QuantEM (QuantEM 2.0), which automatically extracts clinically relevant parameters and forwards them to an expert system (RENEX) for analysis. RENEX provides automated scan interpretation for patients referred for suspected renal obstruction and is currently under development. Our mission is radioligand and expert system development to enhance clinical care.
Details of RENEX are provided on our website: http://www.med.emory.edu/decisionsupportsystems/
- Andrew Taylor, MD
Director, Radioligand and Expert Systems
There are 642 square feet of laboratory research space for synthetic chemistry and radiolabeling including two six-foot fume hoods and one three-foot fume hood. An additional 320 square feet of space are available for animal research. For computing, we have access to the Medical Imaging Research Center which consists of 600 sq. ft. of space on the first floor of the Woodruff Memorial Research Building adjacent to our laboratories.
International Society of Radionuclides in Nephrourology Lifetime Achievement Award
Andrew T. Taylor, MD
Professor of Radiology
In recognition of his achievements and contributions to the field of renal nuclear medicine, the International Society of Radionuclides in Nephrourology awarded Dr. Taylor with the coveted Lifetime Achievement Award at their last meeting. His long interest in renal imaging and renal radiopharmaceutical development began at UCSD in 1977. Dr. Taylor has published well over 100 peer reviewed articles in renal nuclear medicine alone and more than 230 peer reviewed articles overall.
Garcia EV, Taylor A, Folks R, Manatunga D, Halkar R, Savir-Baruch B, Dubovsky E. iRENEX: A clinically-informed decision support system for the interpretation of Tc-99m MAG3 scans to detect renal obstruction. Eur J Nucl Med Mol Imag. 2012. 39:1483-1491.
Taylor AT, Lipowska M, Cai H. 99mTc(CO)3(NTA) and 131I-OIH: Comparable plasma clearances in patients with chronic kidney disease. J Nucl Med 2013. 54:578-584.
Folks RD, Savir-Baruch B, Garcia EV, Verdes L, Taylor AT. Development of a relational database to capture and merge clinical history with the quantitative results of radionuclide renography. J Nucl Med Technol 2012;40:236-243.
Klenc J, Lipowska M,Taylor AT, Marzilli GM. Synthesis and Characterization of fac-Re(CO)3-aspartic-N-monoacetic Acid: Structural Analogue of a Potential Renal Tracer, fac-99mTc(CO)3(ASMA). European Journal of Inorganic Chemistry 2012, 27, 4334–4341.
Lipowska M, Klenc J, Marzilli GM, Taylor AT. Preclinical Evaluation of 99mTc(CO)3-Aspartic-N-Monoacetic Acid, a Renal Radiotracer with Pharmacokinetic Properties Comparable to 131I-o-Iodohippurate. J Nucl Med 2012 53:1277-1283 published ahead of print June 20, 2012 (10.2967/jnumed.111.102236).
Taylor AT. High-altitude illnesses: Physiology, risk factors, prevention, and treatment. Rambam Maimonides Medical Journal 2011;2(1):e0022.
Lipowska M, He H, Xu X, Taylor AT, Marzilli PA, Marzilli LG. Coordination Modes of Multidentate Ligands in fac-[Re(CO)3(polyaminocarboxylate)] Analogues of 99mTc Radiopharmaceuticals. Dependence on Aqueous Solution Reaction Conditions. Inorganic Chemistry. 2010 49 (7), 3141-3151.
Taylor AT, Lipowska M, Marzilli LG. 99mTc(CO)3(NTA): A 99mTc Renal Tracer with Pharmacokinetic Properties Comparable to Those of 131I-OIH in Healthy Volunteers. J Nucl Med. 2010 Mar;51(3):391-6.
Lipowska M, Marzilli LG, Taylor AT. 99mTc(CO)3-Nitrilotriacetic Acid: A New Renal Radiopharmaceutical Showing Pharmacokinetic Properties in Rats Comparable to Those of 131I-OIH. J Nucl Med. 2009 Mar;50(3):454-60.
Taylor A, Garcia EV, Binongo JNG, Manatunga A, Halkar R, Folks RD, Dubovsky EV. Diagnostic performance of an expert system for interpretation of Tc-99m MAG3 scans in suspected renal obstruction. J Nucl Med 2008;49:216-224.
Development of 99mTc Renal Tubular Agents
PI: Andrew T. Taylor, MD
Co-Investigator: Malgorzata Lipowska, PhD
Funding Agency: National Institute of Health grant R01 DK-38842, January 1, 2005-December 31, 2008
Purpose: The major goal is to develop new anionic and cationic Tc-99m renal tracers to provide a measurement of effective renal plasma flow equivalent to or superior to the ERPF measurement provided by para-aminohippurate (PAH).
Decision Support Systems for MAG3 Renography
PI: Andrew Taylor, MD
Co-Investigators: Ernest Garcia, PhD and Amita Manatunga, PhD
This project was previously funded by the National Library of Medicine, RO1 LM007595 from July 1, 2002 through July 31, 2006. A renewal is currently under review. In this renewal, we propose to complete the development of a comprehensive decision support system that will automatically process MAG3 renal scans, identify and correct quality control problems, and incorporate clinical data to interpret MAG3 renal scans in regard to normality, function, obstruction and renovascular hypertension as well as expert nuclear medicine physicians.
Andrew Taylor, MD
Malgorzata Lipowska, PhD
Research Associate:
Jeffrey Klenc, PhD
Radioligand Development:
Luigi Marzilli, PhD, Professor of Chemistry, Louisiana State University
Expert System Development:
Ernest Garcia, PhD, Co-Investigator and Professor, Department of Radiology
Amita Manatunga, PhD, Co-Investigator, Professor, Department of Biostatistics
Russell Folks, BS, CNMT, Senior Research Associate, Department of Radiology
Eva Dubovsky, MD, PhD, Professor of Radiology, University of Alabama
Raghuveer Halkar, MD, Associate Professor of Radiology
Jose Binongo, PhD, Assistant Professor, Kennesaw State University, Georgia
Jieqiong Bao, PhD, Department of Biostatistics
Nettie Sutton
Department of Radiology
Emory University Hospital
1364 Clifton Road
Atlanta, GA 30322
E-mail: nsutton@emory.edu